


The World Apart from Theirs

by opalopal



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Concubine Katsuki Yuuri, Drama, Faerie Victor Nikiforov, Faerie Yuri Plisetsky, Faeries - Freeform, Homophobia, I think slow burn, JJ is an asshole, King Yakov Feltsman, M/M, More yikes, Partial Nudity, Prince Otabek Altin, Shadowhunters - Freeform, Slow Burn, That's the Only Reason It's Rated M, There Might Be Porn Later On, Vampire Katsuki Yuuri, Vampires, Werewolf Jean-Jacques Leroy, Werewolves, Yikes, Yuri Plisetsky's Mother - Freeform, Yuuri Is Sort of Like a Concubine
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-13
Updated: 2017-01-31
Packaged: 2018-09-08 07:48:20
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 18,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8836303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/opalopal/pseuds/opalopal
Summary: Everyone in Anam still thinks the faerie Prince Yuri Plisetsky of Krylel is actually a princess, including the infamous Shadowhunter Prince Otabek Altin of Isar.Their families met once when they were younger, and the two princes fell in love.But when the Starless War threatened to forever divide the four major kingdoms of Anam, they weren't allowed to see each other for seven years.When the war ends, they meet again.But under very, very different circumstances.A tale of sacrifice, soul-searching, and star-naming.And true love, of course.





	1. A Plaything and a Potion

'Inaskeler. This poison causes delusions. It is fairly simple to mix with other substances. It is dark amber and tastes like tomato juice.'

The fair-skinned prince sat down gingerly with the book of potions in his shaking hands, wondering if anyone was watching him. No, it was a silly thought. Of course nobody would be watching him . . . Right?

The prince hurriedly flipped through the book, keeping one finger on the page he had just mumbled out loud to himself, making sure it had been real. When no other potions sounded like the one his father had described, he flipped back to Inaskeler.

"Victor . . ." Yuri trailed off, ripping the page out of the book. "I'm sorry."

 

After the Starless War had ended, Krylel had been the only major kingdom left in Anam. The other three had become corrupt and divided, and Yuri's father Yakov had said it was because there were only faeries in Krylel. That it was the purest kingdom in all of Anam.

Yuri believed him for a while, and then he realized Krylel was the only major kingdom left in Anam because it was situated in between two of the highest mountains in the northernmost part of the country, making it hard to attack.

It had been luck that their small, homogenous kingdom had survived the Starless War.

The western and eastern kingdoms had been at war for three years when they had accidentally involved the southernmost kingdom of Anam, the kingdom of werewolves. The kingdoms of Krylel and Raes had been close, and still are today, so Yakov had decided to help them out, giving them soldiers and weapons and millions of sirpas, the currency in Anam.

After the western kingdom Dreklen had figured out that Krylel was helping Raes, they started to attack them too. When the Shadowhunters in the eastern kingdom Isar had figured out that Krylel had been dragged into the Starless War, they sent soldiers and sirpas.

Not many can recall the origins of the Starless War or why it lasted so long, but many seem to think it started with the assassination of vampire Prince Yuuri's father and mother.

Krylel took over Dreklen a few months after the war ended, and Prince Victor, Yuri's older brother, had gone down there with a small group of soldiers to investigate the state of the kingdom.

Yuri had expected his brother to bring back a few women as sex slaves, but instead he had brought back Prince Katsuki Yuuri in glowing shackles.

Yuri remembered the day his brother came back with a male vampire. Krylel had started gossiping as soon as they had spotted Prince Yuuri shackled, looking exhausted. Bags under his eyes. Malnourished.

Yuri had been waiting on the stairs leading up the castle with his father, holding his hands like a lady. He had tried not to make a face at the vampire, but he couldn't've helped it. The vampire prince had been dirty, had smelled like dried Shadowhunter blood, and had been wearing one of Victor's winter jackets since it was cold in Krylel almost every month of the year.

"I'll talk to him later," Yakov had said, fixing the crown on his head.

"Do," was all Yuri had said in response. When Victor had gotten closer to them, Yuri had raised a hand to his nose to cover it from the foul stench of vampire.

And Prince Yuuri was still in Krylel, lounging in Victor's room all day. Sleeping, eating. When Yuuri wasn't in Victor's room, he was following him around the castle, attending meetings with him. Yakov tried to talk to Victor about getting rid of the vampire prince, but Victor wouldn't listen to him.

Yuri marched down one of the many hallways in the castle, looking for his father and his assistant Lilia. He wanted to shout for him, but he knew his voice was getting deeper. He couldn't risk being found out. Victor and Yakov would kill him.

A few minutes later, Yuri found his father and Lilia in one of his studies, looking over maps of Anam and talking in hushed voices.

"Father," Yuri said, knocking on the door. "I need to talk to you."

Yakov dismissed Lilia, and Yuri walked into the study, closing the door behind her.

"Did you find it?" Yakov asked, standing up from his desk.

"Of course," Yuri said. He took the page out from his dress's left sleeve and handed it over to his father, watching his face expectantly. "Will we give it to the vampire tonight?"

"We should," Yakov said, inspecting the potion. "The sooner we get him out, the better."

". . . And delusions will solve our problem?" Yuri asked.

"Victor wouldn't be able to handle a delusional plaything," Yakov smiled. "Anyway, we should be working on getting you out. The women in Krylel will be pleased to know you're actually a prince."

Yuri paused before asking, "Did you hide me before the Starless War because you had a feeling it was going to happen?"

"Your mother was worried, bless her soul," Yakov mumbled. He cleared his throat. "Now, give this to one of the royal apothecaries. Tell them it's from the king." He handed his son the page. "And don't let Victor see you talking to them. I think he already knows we're up to something."

Yuri nodded and took the page. Before he turned to leave, he glanced down at the map of Anam, and he saw that there had been arrows drawn to point at Isar.

"Have we decided to attack Isar?" Yuri asked, cocking his head to the side. It was a feminine habit he'd have to grow out of very soon. "I thought we liked each other."

"Things have changed, Yuri," was all Yakov said. "Things have changed."

Yuri nodded and left, and he slipped the page back up his left sleeve. His small heels clacked against the artistic tiled floors of the castle as he made his way down to the basement, searching for the royal apothecaries. When he found them, he handed the page to one of the younger ones, explaining that the king needed it by tonight.

 

When Yuri got back to his room, just before dinner, he locked the door and slipped out of his dress, walking over to one of his mirrors in his small heels. He had gotten used to the sound of them by now.

He skimmed his hands over his hips, admiring his lacy underwear, biting his lip. When he got to a mirror, he stopped, staring at himself. His feminine legs. His unflawed skin.

He knew that Victor and Yakov had disguised him as a girl because if he and Victor had both died during the war, there would've been nobody in line for the throne.

But Yuri still wished he had grown up as a boy. Had gotten into loads of trouble for roughhousing in the castle. The fair-skinned prince sighed and thumbed the lacy edges of his underwear, pulling them down a bit to stare at the 'v' forming by his hips.

 _I look so good in thigh-highs,_ Yuri thought to himself, biting his lip again. He felt himself blushing, so he fixed his underwear and turned away from the mirror, walking back over to his door to pick up his dress. But as he turned around, he saw the vampire prince standing there, smiling, a hand placed thoughtfully on his face.

Yuri choked on a scream and felt himself blushing.

"How the fuck did you get in here?" Yuri hissed, trying to cover himself. "Get out!"

"I'm a vampire, remember?" Yuuri smiled.

"Get! Out!" Yuri hissed again, trying not to raise his voice. "Why are you even in my room?"

"Victor told me to tell you, 'Quit it,'" Yuuri said, walking over to Yuri's door. It was unlocked. "Whatever that means." Yuuri smiled and disappeared, the door opening and closing in milliseconds. Yuri rushed over to the door and locked it. He picked up his dress and walked back over to the mirror.

He put on the dress and stomped down to dinner.


	2. On the Other Side of the Krylel'd Mountains

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Krylel is attacked for the first time in centuries, and it has everyone shook.  
> 

Krylel = Northern kingdom.

Isar = Eastern kingdom.

Raes = Southern kingdom.

Dreklen = Western kingdom.

 

Prince Yuri Plisetsky remembered the day he met Isar's Prince Otabek Altin. He'd been eight years old, and the Isarian prince had been thirteen. Yuri had been sitting in one of the many gardens surrounding the Krylel'd castle during the summer.

Because it was usually freezing all year, many Krylel'ds took advantage of the slightly warmer weather during the summer and planted flowers here, there, and everywhere. The whole kingdom was usually an uncoordinated mess of bright colors and blue roses, but Yuri thought that the view from the castle was beautiful.

The Isarian prince had come running around the castle and into the garden, glancing over his shoulder every now and then. Yuri had seen him from where he'd been sitting under the rotunda in one of his all-time favorite summer dresses.

Otabek had stopped running after a few minutes, walking in front of the rotunda. He hadn't noticed Yuri yet because he'd been concealed by a lot of shade.

"You there," Yuri had said, and the Isarian prince had started. "Who are you?"

Yuri pulled himself out of his thoughts as he walked down to dinner, grabbing nervously at his somewhat see-through dress. It showed off his thin legs, all the way up to his upper thigh.

He braided his hair nervously as he got down to the first floor of the castle, and a few servants bowed to him as he passed, staring after him wistfully.

Once he was done braiding his hair, he pinched his cheeks and licked his lips before pushing into the dining room. Victor and Yuuri had already started eating, picking at the bread rolls and hors d'oeuvres. Victor was wearing a loose button down shirt and the dress pants with the hand sewn blue roses on them. He loved those.

Yuuri, on the other hand, was wearing a robe of sorts, and it was slightly falling off his shoulders. But he didn't seem to care as he laughed with Victor, slightly leaning into the Krylel'd prince. Yuri walked over to the large, decorated table, looking less at the food and more at his older brother and the vampire.

"Ah, Yuri," Victor said, just noticing his younger brother. "You're finally here!"

"Yes," Yuri said, keeping his face as blank as possible. It wasn't ladylike of him to show off so much emotion. And then it hit him. He didn't have to act like a lady anymore. At least, not around the vampire prince. After all, he'd just seen him half-naked. "I would've been down sooner, but you decided to have your plaything threaten me while I was getting ready."

"Didn't seem like you were getting ready to me," Yuuri smirked into his wineglass.

"Oh?" Victor laughed at his younger brother, and Yuuri slipped an arm around his shoulders, leaning into him even more. "Don't tell me you were doing something embarrassing, Yurochka."

"Shut up," Yuri spat, grabbing his napkin. He put it in his lap and grabbed for some bread rolls, trying not to turn red.

Victor hummed to himself, and he waved his hand, lighting the candles on the table with a little bit of magic. Yuri was instantly hit with the smell of lavender, the smell of Victor's magic.

"Great," Yuri mumbled. "It'll smell like lavender in here for at least a week now."

"At least I have a smell," Victor said.

Yuri didn't say anything. He just kept eating bread rolls.

When someone practices magic for a long time, their magic starts to smell like the thing they love the most when they use it. Victor's magic smells like lavender, and Yuri's father's magic smells like the rain. Sometimes Victor and Yuri would find their father using his magic to impress his assisstant Lilia in his study.

Yuri had been practicing magic for almost eight years, and it still didn't smell like anything.

"Anyway, Victor," Yuuri said, "when are we going out?"

"You're going out?" Yuri asked, glancing up at his older brother. "Where?"

"Just out," Victor said.

The doors to the dining room opened as Yuri shook his head, and everyone looked up to see Lilia standing there.

"Ah, Lilia, is Yakov not coming?" Victor asked.

"No, he's not," she bowed slightly and then left, closing the doors behind her.

Yuri got up from the table and put his napkin down on his plate.

"Oh, you're leaving too?" Victor asked, looking up at his younger brother.

". . . Yeah," Yuri said, and he went back up to his room. He got out of his dress and yanked at his braid until it was gone. He walked back over to the mirror he'd been standing in front of before, and he stared at himself. He knew that his father wanted him to come out as a prince soon, but he was going to miss the dresses and the long hair.

Yuri pouted and slipped a few fingers under the waistband of his underwear before he lost his confidence. Yuri had never touched himself for fun, but he wanted to try it.

But as soon as his fingers brushed over his penis, he yanked his hand away.

"Damn it," he whispered, eyes stinging with tears. He rushed over to his closet and grabbed a black robe that Yuuri's older sister Mari had given to him at his fifth birthday. Whenever the robe looked short on Yuri, he'd beg his older brother to use his magic to make it longer. And that was how it had become one of Yuri's favorite robes; it smelled like his older brother, and he never outgrew it.

And it was something Yuri wore whenever he needed to be comforted.

The back of the robe had hand sewn constellations on it, and Yuri stared at them for a few seconds before putting it on and walking over to his balcony. He sat down in the cold, hugging himself.

Yuri looked at the kingdom from his balcony, wondering how Anam was going to fix itself after the Starless War.

And that was when Yuri felt the first explosion.

He jumped up and ran to the end of his balcony. "What-?" Another explosion went off, and Yuri saw it this time. It lit up one of the hills across the kingdom. "Shit!" Yuri shouted. He ran back into his room, and Victor threw his door open.

"Yurochka! This way!" Victor shouted, waving at his younger brother. Yuri ran after him, and they stumbled out into the hallway. Yuri could hear his father shouting downstairs, and the two princes, followed by a sleepy Yuuri, ran downstairs.

"Yuri! Victor!" Yakov shouted in the main hallway. "We're under attack!"

Yuri caught his breath after they stopped running, and Yuuri stayed behind him.

"Who's attacking?" Victor asked. The castle shook, and Yuri watched as the beautiful tiles started to crack.

"Don't know," Yakov grunted as he put on a jacket. "Let's get going. We have to get to safety."

"Where're we going?" Victor asked as his father started to walk away. The three princes followed him and Lilia.

"To the horses," Yakov said. "We're going to leave as discreetly as possible. Up and over the first mountain will do."

"But there isn't a lot of cover," Victor said as another explosion went off.

"It's our only option," Yakov said as they ran to the back of the castle. Another couple of explosions went off, and they rocked the castle so much that Yuri tripped over his feet. Yuri was in the middle of pushing himself up when Yuuri picked him up and stood him on his feet.

"Come on," Yuuri whispered, pushing Yuri forward. They ran out of the castle and to the stables where a few guards were waiting for them. The snow stung Yuri's bare feet.

Yuri wished he'd been wearing something a little less revealing before the attack had happened.

He shivered as he ran over to his horse, Honey, and jumped on. A few of the male guards stopped what they were doing to stare at Yuri, and Victor yelled at them. Yuri looked at his older brother and was surprised when his shirt hit him in the face.

"Cover up," Victor shouted over the commotion. Another explosion went off, and Yuuri jumped on Victor's horse, wrapping his arms around him. "Come on, let's go!" Yuri tied Victor's shirt around his waist.

They took off up the mountain, and Yuri kept looking over his shoulder at the burning kingdom. How was this happening? Weren't the mountains supposed to protect them? Yuri tried to tear his eyes away from the burning kingdom, but he heard shouting. He saw a group of men on horses riding up the stairs to the Krylel'd castle. One of them pointed at him and his family escaping up the first mountain.

"Shit," Victor cursed under his breath. Yuri and his family continued moving their horses up the mountain as quickly as possible. "Father, where are we going?"

"There should be a safe house in the next city," Yakov said, glancing back at his sons. "It shouldn't take us long to get there once we get up this mountain."

"Okay," Victor said.

Yuri was about to say something when the worst pain he'd ever felt blossomed in his right shoulder, and he screamed out, eyes wide. Victor did a double take.

"Shit! Yuri!" Victor shouted, trying to get his horse to slow down. Arrows rained down on them, and Yuuri wrapped his arms around the back of Victor's head in a panic. The faerie prince was surprised at first, but then he remembered that vampires were almost invincible.

Yuri gritted his teeth as he looked over his right shoulder at the arrow lodged there. Then he saw the men on horses riding up at the mountain after them, and he urged his horse to go faster.

"Forget it!" Yuri shouted at Victor, struggling not to cry. "We'll fix it later!"

Victor nodded, and they kept going up the mountain. Yuri's horse got arrows stuck in its back, and Yuuri was struggling to keep Victor protected.

Yuri glanced over his shoulder at the men on horses and saw that they were closer. What the hell had happened to their guards?

When they got to the top of the mountain, Yuri had to turn his horse to go to the right, and an arrow hit Honey right in the eye. Yuri choked out a scream as his horse reared, and he fell off, tumbling down the other side of the mountain. It wasn't as steep as the other side, but he still had a hard time stopping himself.

He grabbed onto a tree and sat up on his heels, and he looked up to see the men on horses splitting up into two different groups. One was going after his family, and one was getting off of their horses to go after Yuri on foot.

Yuri stood up in the snow, fingers and toes almost blue, and he started running down the mountain as fast as he could, trying not to trip. He tried to ignore the pain in his right shoulder, but it was getting so bad that he was starting to see black patches.

Yuri glanced back over his good shoulder to see a man in some armor sliding down at his legs, taking him out. The faerie prince tumbled and slid down on his stomach, trying not to roll over. He didn't want to agitate the arrow in his shoulder.

He pushed himself up from the snow, shaking, and looked up into the eyes of Prince Otabek Altin.

"O-Otabek," Yuri stammered, sitting back on his heels. He clutched at his right shoulder. He knew that faeries bled gold blood, but he was still surprised at the amount of it on his hand when he brought it back.

He looked back up at Otabek. "What are you doing here? Are you here to kill me?" He asked in his most feminine voice.

"No, princess," he said, grabbing Yuri's good arm. Yuri was shocked by the amount of hatred in Otabek's glare. "I'm here to take you back to Isar."

 

As Otabek's men set up camp on the outskirts of a city close to Krylel, Yuri sat on Otabek's horse. His left wrist was tied to Otabek's saddle, so he couldn't really go anywhere.

A wind tore through the forest, and Yuri shuddered, losing almost all feeling in his fingers and toes. Yuri bit his lip.

He still had Victor's shirt tied around his waist, and it smelled somewhat of lavender. The arrow was also still stuck in Yuri's shoulder, and he wanted to rip it out. He knew it would probably kill him . . . And that was the point.

Yuri tried to reach back with his right hand, but he couldn't get a good grip on it. It would've been easier to grab it with his left hand, but it was currently tied down to Otabek's saddle. Yuri cursed, and he saw someone approaching him out of the corner of his eye.

It was Otabek. He'd gotten out of his armor and was wearing a thick winter coat with a furry hood. He reached up and cut the rope around Yuri's left wrist, and he grabbed him by the hips, yanking him off of the horse.

Yuri cried out as pain flared up his right shoulder. "Watch what you're doing!" Yuri shouted as femininely as possible. His long blonde hair fell over his shoulders and around his face. When the wind tore through the forest again, it covered his face.

"You're coming with me," Otabek said, yanking Yuri towards his tent.

Yuri panicked. "What're you-?!"

Otabek yanked him again, and Yuri bit his lip to keep himself from screaming. Otabek pushed him into his tent, and he crawled in after him, buttoning the flaps closed.

Yuri looked around the spacious tent, surprised. It was padded with a duvet of sorts . . . And he could see food and water by the pillows. He looked back at Otabek.

Otabek was mixing something in a bowl.

"What're you doing?" Yuri asked softly.

"We have a lot of traveling to do," Otabek said, turning to face Yuri. Yuri saw the bandages in his hands and a bowl of some paste, and he swallowed thickly. "I'll have to remove that a-"

"No!" Yuri shouted, moving back. The end of the arrow hit the tent, and he grimaced, leaning forward. "Fuck, fuck, fuck."

"It'll get better soon, princess," Otabek said, and Yuri glared up at him.

"Fuck. No," he said through gritted teeth.

The two stared at each other for a few seconds before Otabek put down the bandages and the paste and lunged for the boy. He shoved him down on the duvet and kept a shin on the back of Yuri's thighs, and the faerie panicked, his eyes stinging with tears.

"No, please! Don't! Pl-!"

Otabek ripped the arrow out, and Yuri screamed. His whole body spasmed in pain, and he squeezed his eyes shut.

"Goddammit!" Yuri tried to sit up, but Otabek grabbed him by the neck and shoved him down again. Yuri was trying to come up with something to say, but he suddenly felt Otabek smearing the slightly grainy paste over his wound.

Yuri hissed in pain.

"This'll help stop the bleeding," Otabek said, letting go of Yuri's neck. Yuri stayed still, trying to figure out what he should do next. Should he try running away in the middle of the night? No, that wouldn't get him anywhere. He'd just freeze to death.

Otabek made Yuri sit up again, and he said, "I won't make you take off your robe . . . I'll just have a woman bandage you tomorrow, okay?"

Yuri stared at the Isarian prince, surprised. "O-Okay."

"Now, if you don't mind, I have to tie you up again," Otabek said, grabbing Yuri's wrists. Yuri thought about struggling, but he didn't want to get hurt again.

So he stayed still as Otabek tied his hands behind his back, and then the Isarian prince made him lie down on his stomach. He gathered blankets and covered them both before blowing out the candles by his pillows.

Yuri stared at the Isarian prince's back, and he couldn't help but remember how they had first met.

Yuri wondered if he remembered too.

 

A/N: Ahhhhh! The second chapter! At last! I know it's been about a week, and I'm sorry it took so long, but I was busy with finals and flying home. But I'm back! I really hope you guys are enjoying this so far. I didn't expect such a great response to the first chapter. Your kudos and comments seriously make my day!! Also, here's my tumblr! https://opalopalopal.tumblr.com. You can follow me if you want; I'll be updating with chapters and ideas and whatnot. I didn't really beta this chapter, but I think it's okay. If you have any comments or suggestions, just let me know!


	3. Drazak, Crael, and Erenea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Otabek brings Yuri to Isar, and he meets the family.

Yuri woke up to the sound of someone moving around in the tent, and it was none other than the Isarian prince. He tried to look like he was still sleeping by keeping his breathing even and face relaxed. He tried not to think about the dull pain in his shoulder, but he started to wonder whether or not it was infected and if he was going to be okay. Yuri opened his eyes just a bit to look around the tent, and he figured that Otabek was near the flaps of the tent because he was nowhere in his line of sight. From where he was lying down, Yuri could see the food by Otabek’s pillows, and his stomach started to growl.

“Hungry?” Otabek chuckled.

Yuri closed his eyes, trying not to groan. “U-Uh, yes. I suppose.” He struggled to sit up with his hurt shoulder.

Before he could make it all the way up, Otabek was helping him, holding onto his arms gently.

Even after Otabek let go of him, Yuri could still feel him.

“Thank you,” Yuri said in a soft voice, keeping his eyes ahead.

Everything was quiet for a few moments before Otabek said, “Um, my men and women woke up later than usual today, so we won’t have time to bandage your wound. As long as we keep the paste on it, it should be good. Until we reach Isar. Then I’ll have someone bandage you up, okay?”

Yuri looked at Otabek over his good shoulder, and he saw that he was all suited up and ready to go.

“Why are you keeping me alive?” Yuri asked. His blue eyes narrowed. “Are you trying to get information out of me? Are you going to torture me?”

Otabek’s face darkened. “We’d do no such thing, Princess Yuri.”

“Then why am I here? Why did you capture me? Alive?”

“I’ll explain later,” Otabek said, shaking his head. He gathered his things and shoved a pile of clothes towards Yuri. “These are from some of the women that ride with me. They should fit you.” He took out a knife and cut Yuri’s ropes away. “We’ll be waiting.”

He got up and left the tent, and Yuri rubbed his wrists, finally turning around. Once Otabek had finished buttoning up the tent’s flaps again, Yuri snatched some of his food, shoving fruits and bready things into his mouth, trying not to choke. And then he tried to get dressed as quickly as possible, ignoring the pain in his right shoulder.

He folded up his black robe once he’d gotten into one of the heavy winter coats and into some thick leggings, and he found that Otabek had even gotten shoes for him. They were by the tent’s flaps, and they definitely weren’t Yuri’s size, but the faerie prince grabbed for them anyway, not wanting cold feet on the journey to Isar.

Yuri tied the boots on and pushed out of the tent with his unruly blonde hair. As soon as he was out of the tent, holding his black robe, some of Otabek’s men and women went to clean up and pack the tent and everything inside of it. Yuri stood there, baffled, wondering what he should be doing.

“Princess,” Otabek said, riding up to Yuri. “Up here with me.”

Yuri got up on Otabek’s horse, sitting down in front of him instead of behind. Yuri didn’t say anything as Otabek’s men and women got ready to leave. He was watching them patiently when he noticed a tan girl with brilliant purple eyes and a young man that looked like the spitting image of her. They must’ve been twins.

“We’ll get to Isar by nightfall,” Otabek said as his group finished up packing. They all got on their horses, glancing at their leader and the Krylel’d princess. They didn’t trust Yuri. “Is something wrong?” Otabek asked, looking around. Yuri felt him shift behind him on the horse, and he gritted his teeth as pain shot up through his right shoulder.

“We just don’t trust the Krylel’d princess,” the purple-eyed young man spoke up. He got onto his horse, glancing nervously at his twin. She looked a little disappointed in him for speaking so boldly. “You’re very close to her, and we don’t even know if she can use magic. I’m just - just looking out for you, Prince Otabek.”

“I appreciate your concern, Michele, but I can handle myself,” Otabek said, grabbing the reigns of his horse. Yuri looked down at his veiny hands, embarrassed that they were so close to his crotch. “Now, let’s make way.”

Yuri couldn’t feel his ass after an hour, but he knew they weren’t stopping. Otabek had been adamant about making it back to Isar before nightfall. He’d even told people they would have to piss from their horses because they wouldn’t be stopping.

Not even once.

Yuri thought for a split second that this couldn’t be the Otabek that he’d met before the Starless War. There was no way.

But it was him.

“How’s your shoulder?” Otabek asked after two hours of complete silence. He’d barely even sighed. Yuri thought he was going to lose his mind with how boring the day trip to Isar was.

“It’s fine,” Yuri said softly, burrowing his face into his jacket when a particularly cold gust of wind overcame them. He glanced down to see Otabek’s fingers exposed to the cold wind, still holding onto the reigns. “Are your fingers cold?” His fingers curled out of his coat sleeves, tentatively hovering over Otabek’s hands.

Otabek didn’t say anything, and Yuri was starting to wonder if he’d even heard him. So he went ahead and placed his hands on top of Otabek’s, making sure to cover them from the wind. He moved his fingers out of the way after a few minutes, gazing down at the scars on the backs of his hands and the callouses on his fingers.

After a few more hours of quiet travel, Yuri could see Isar in the distance. He could see the tops of buildings and smell the ocean, even though it was very faint at first. He’d never been allowed out of Krylel, so this was his first time seeing the eastern kingdom and the ocean.

As Otabek and his men and women guided their horses over the last hill, they stopped to admire the kingdom sprawled out in front of them. A few watched Yuri, waiting for his reaction.

He was shocked at how large it was - it was far larger than Krylel. It stretched on for miles, full of buildings and houses made out dry, tan-grey stones and bright shingled roofs. Because they’d been traveling all day, it was dark outside, so Yuri couldn’t see the entire kingdom from where they were standing, but he could just make out the outline of it against the rapidly darkening sky.

As they approached the eastern kingdom, Yuri tried to wrack his brain for information he’d been taught about Isar. He remembered the king’s name - Aslan. And the queen’s name was Aruzhan. They had no other kids but Otabek . . . Right? Yuri shook his head, trying to think of what else Lilia and his teachers had taught him when he was younger.

They were apparently more matriarchal than the other kingdoms in Anam. And they only worshipped one god, which actually happened to be a goddess. Yuri couldn’t remember her name, but he remember that she was specifically important to the Shadowhunters - that she was the mother of them. Or something like that.

Yuri realized that it wasn’t as cold as Krylel, and he relaxed his posture. They started to pass small houses on the outskirts of the large kingdom, and little children ran out of their houses to wave at the Isarian prince, and young women fixed themselves up to wave at Otabek from a distance, coquettish smiles on their faces.

The Krylel’d prince took in as much as he could - it was his first time out of Krylel, after all. They started to pass the markets, and Yuri was hit with wind that was coming from the ocean, and, just past the stone houses in the square, he could see the edge of the cliff. And he could hear the ocean far below.

He swallowed thickly as they passed a series of stone walls and scary-looking guards, and Yuri realized that they were suddenly inside of the palace walls. He looked around and then ahead again, and he saw that the castle was built on the side of the cliff. Otabek dismissed his men, except for one of the women, and Otabek got off his horse. He reached up, and Yuri stared down at him blankly, feeling a bit dazed from the long journey and from sitting still for so long.

“What?” Yuri asked softly, feeling nervous with so many palace guards staring at him. He was also unnerved at the amount of angel statues that littered the palace; they were on the walls, on the edges of castle, and at the top arranged in various positions, flinging their hands out gracefully. He’d never been exposed to such a different culture, and he didn’t know how to react without the possibility of insulting someone, namely the king and queen.

“Grab my hands,” Otabek said simply. “I’m helping you down. I’ll be gentle. You’re probably stiff.”

Yuri nodded numbly and grabbed Otabek’s hands. The Isarian prince let go of one to reach under one of Yuri’s armpits as he came down, and Yuri landed on his feet softly. The woman with purple eyes came up to Otabek, and he turned around to look at her.

“Yes, Sara?”

“Your parents are probably waiting for you in the main hall,” Sara said, glancing briefly at Yuri.

Yuri recognized the emotion that flitted across her face.

Suspicion.

Yuri swallowed thickly as they approached the main hall of the castle that was open to the public in a way. There were palace guards, of course, but the castle often held banquets open to the public, and the queen offered to help the hungry and homeless almost every week or as often as possible.

The palace guards parted for Yuri and Otabek, and Sara trailed behind them, keeping a hand on the sword at her hip. Lanterns hung from the main hall, and Yuri admired their soft yellow glow against the almost grey-looking stone of the castle. The main hall stretched on for a bit, and Yuri could see hallways branching off and a big set of doors at the end of it.

A couple came out of one of the hallways, and Yuri saw that it was the king and the queen of Isar. His breath hitched as he took in the powerful-looking couple. The king was dressed in dark blue robes with golden accents, and he looked like the kind of person who'd have a constant frown on his face. The queen, on the other hand, was clothed in a billowy dress that matched her husband’s robes, and she looked much younger than him. Her face was practically wrinkle-free, but her eyes looked old and tired, and Yuri could tell right away that Otabek looked more like his mother than his father. Her thick black hair was combed and flowed down her back with a slight wave.

Yuri vaguely remembered her visiting Krylel and talking to his father and Lilia, but that was it.

“Otabek, you’re back,” Aslan said. “When you’re free, I’d like to talk to you more about our plans.”

“I’m free now,” Otabek said, bowing his head slightly. He turned to Sara. “Take Princess Yuri up to a spare room and tend to her shoulder wound, please.”

“Of course, Prince Otabek,” Sara curtsied slightly and was about to lead Yuri upstairs when the queen spoke up.

“Ah, Princess Yuri,” Aruzhan said, lightly touching Yuri’s elbow to get him to stop. The queen of Isar was about his height, so he looked into her eyes with ease. “I’m sorry about your shoulder wound. I didn’t expect my son to hurt you in the process of . . . collecting you.” She paused before adding, “I will explain everything tomorrow over tea, yes?”

Lilia’s training kicked in, and Yuri curtsied slightly. “Thank you, Queen Aruzhan. That would be nice . . . But I’m afraid I have nothing to wear.”

“I’ll send dresses to you in the morning,” she said, patting his arm softly. She had a knowing smile on her face. “You must be tired. Let Sara help you clean your wound before you go to bed.”

“Yes, thank you,” Yuri nodded before Sara helped him away. The queen stared after Yuri for a few more seconds before turning to her son and husband. They were both talking in hushed voices when she walked up to Otabek and slapped his arm with the fan that had been dangling at her hip.

“Mother!”

“You will treat Princess Yuri with respect,” she said, barely keeping her anger in check. “I can tell you did not treat her well on your journey here. I’m very disappointed in you, Beka.”

Otabek gaped at his mother who was almost the same height as him. “But-!”

“I don’t care what your plan is,” she said, looking back and forth between her husband and son. “You will treat her with respect.” She gave her son a stern look, and Otabek felt like she was burning holes in his skull. "You will treat her like a lady.”

“Y-Yes, mother,” Otabek said.

“After all,” Aruzhan said, unfolding her fan. “You did like her when you were younger. Remember when we visited Krylel?”

 

Sara let Yuri into a spare room a few floors up in the castle, and he stepped in, exhaustion finally hitting him right in the face. He groaned as softly as he could, trying to be aware of his voice and how much it was changing.

“I’ll get a bath started, princess,” Sara said. “I used to be a lady in waiting for the prince’s mother when I was younger, so I know how to get you ready for bed. If you’d like my help.”

Yuri stared after the purple-eyed young woman as she took off some leather armor and deposited it by the bathroom door. She lingered by the door, waiting for Yuri’s response.

He really couldn’t have anyone figuring out that he was actually a prince. They would treat him differently. And he was scared of how they would treat him, especially Otabek.

He figured he was still favorable in Otabek’s eyes as a princess, so he was going to drag this out as long as possible, even if he had to fake losing his voice or something.

“Yes, I’d like that very much,” Yuri said, trying to sound like the women he’d spent most of his youth with in the Krylel'd castle. He straightened his back and held his hands as daintily as possible, trying to put a small smile on his face. “Thank you, Sara.”

Sara was a little surprised at the princess’s noble demeanor but quickly got to work, reminding herself that Yuri had been brought up as a princess, after all.

She started a bath and kept glancing over her shoulder at Yuri. She saw the princess by the big bed in the room, touching the duvet with thin fingers, looking around.

“Princess, the bath is ready,” Sara said. She stood up as Yuri walked into the bathroom with a passive face. “Is there something wrong?”

“Where does the hot water come from?” Yuri asked, dipping a few fingers into the bath.

“Well,” Sara said, surprised the princess asked something like that. Most people didn’t care about the workings of the castle. “People use magic where the water is in the castle to warm it and then send it up. Baths are usually a rarity in the castle, so they’re a big deal when people request them. I just pull this string,” Sara said, moving a wallboard away to reveal a string, “and the people downstairs do the rest.”

“How interesting,” Yuri said, still standing still by the bath.

Sara studied the princess for a bit before asking, “Do you want to bathe by yourself? I’d rather be here to help you in case anything happens . . . And don’t worry, we’re both women. You’ve probably had help like this before, no?”

Yuri pursed his lips, trying to figure out how he was going to get out of this.

“I’ll be fine alone,” he said. He couldn’t bring himself to look in Sara’s eyes.

“O-Oh . . .” She trailed off. “Okay. I’ll wait outside to help dress your wound properly when you’re done.”

“Thank you, Sara,” Yuri said, and Sara left the bathroom, closing the door. Yuri sighed when she was gone and started to undress, thinking vaguely of Victor and the vampire prince Yuuri. His father Yakov. Lilia. He started to wonder if things were ever going to be the same. He wondered what the queen was going to tell him tomorrow at tea.

He was so caught up in thinking that, as he was getting into the bath, he didn’t hear Sara open the bathroom door, towels in her hands.

“Ah, Princess-”

Yuri froze, in the middle of running his hands through his long hair. He was stark naked, and Sara was staring right at him. At his penis.

She dropped the towels.

“Ah-”

“You can’t tell anyone!” Yuri almost shouted, and he could feel adrenaline and magic coursing through his veins. He’d keep her quiet with magic if he’d have to. His hair started to lift up around his shoulders, and Sara’s face paled in shock. “I forbid you to!”

“I - I wasn’t going to,” Sara managed to say, and Yuri felt himself relax. His hair fell back down around his shoulders, and he was slightly disappointed that he hadn’t been able to smell anything. His smell was going to come sooner or later.

He sat down in the bath when he realized he was simply standing there naked, and Sara picked up the towels.

She kneeled by the bath, and Yuri looked up at her.

“You’re really a boy?” She asked softly, putting the towels down on a wooden stool.

“Yes.”

Sara pursed her lips, thinking. “I . . . I’ll help you, Yuri.”

Yuri’s eyes widened, and a soft feeling bubbled in his chest. “Why . . ? Why would you help me?”

“Your capturing was a bit of a surprise, even to us,” she admitted softly, looking down. “But it was one of our options. Queen Aruzhan will explain everything to you tomorrow. But I feel bad about taking you hostage, and I know you’re probably unaware of a lot of things going on right now. So I’ll help you. As a fellow . . . lady. I suppose.”

“I’m a boy,” Yuri deadpanned.

“I know, I know,” Sara chuckled softly, and Yuri felt like, for the first time since being captured, he could trust someone. “Here, turn around. Let me clean your wound while you’re in the bath. It’ll be easier for the both of us, believe me.”

 

As Sara got to work cleaning Yuri’s wound as carefully as she could, she made small talk. But she couldn’t help staring at Yuri’s pale blonde hair, remembering how it had risen in a moment of desperation, how the room had been saturated with the heavy feeling of magic. She’d never felt anything like it before.

After Sara got Yuri in a night dress and a light bathrobe, she was about to leave when someone knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Yuri said, and Sara noticed how lighter it sounded. How he was switching to act more like a princess.

Otabek pushed into the room carrying a tray of food, and Yuri nearly lost it. He was so, so hungry.

“Sara,” Otabek nodded at her. He looked at Yuri. “Princess.”

“Prince Otabek,” Yuri said, sitting down on his bed and tying his bathrobe. “You brought food.”

“Yes,” he said, swallowing thickly as he tried not to stare at Yuri. He thought the princess looked beautiful after her bath. “You can leave now, Sara. Thank you for taking care of Princess Yuri.”

“My pleasure,” Sara said, bowing slightly. “And I’ll be here to help her in the morning, if you don’t mind.” Sara and Yuri shared a knowing look.

“Not at all,” Otabek said, waving her goodbye. Yuri got under the covers as Otabek approached him with the tray of food, and he put it down on Yuri’s legs. Yuri couldn’t tell what time it was, but he wanted to eat as much as possible while still getting as much sleep as possible. Victor always told him he looked like the walking dead on bad nights and that he’d never find a husband looking like that. Yuri would always chase him down with a pointy heel in his hand after that.

“Thank you,” Yuri said, picking through the food on the plate. He still had to eat like a lady while Otabek was watching. “I was famished.”

“I’m sorry,” Otabek blurted, and Yuri was surprised to see Otabek kneeling down by his bedside. “I apologize for any discomfort caused during your journey here. I should’ve treated you with more respect.”

Yuri was shocked to say the least. “I - It’s fine,” Yuri said, struggling to find the right words. “I mean, not being shot would’ve been nice. But I’m sure your mother will explain everything to me tomorrow.”

Sara had braided his hair down his back, and it was soaking through his bathrobe, but he didn’t care. He was just so hungry.

“I also apologize for that,” Otabek said, still kneeling. His head was bowed low.

Yuri stopped eating to reach down and hold Otabek’s face. He brought it up, and the Isarian prince was surprised at his touch.

“I’m alive, Otabek,” Yuri said softly. “Everything’s okay. Or it will be. Hopefully.”

He let go of Otabek’s face, and the Isarian prince rose to his feet shakily. Yuri didn’t notice.

He walked over to Yuri’s balcony as the Krylel’d prince continued to eat, and he stared up at the sky, not wanting to open the balcony doors. Even though it was warmer in Isar, the weather at night was still considered chilly, especially because they were near the ocean.

“There,” Otabek said, pointing up at the sky. Yuri stopped eating to look at him, confused. “There’s Drazak. And Crael. Erenea . . .” Otabek trailed off as he started to point at stars, and Yuri almost dropped the food that was in his hand.

Otabek was naming the stars they’d named as children.

“You remember,” Yuri said, and Otabek brought his hand down. Yuri was surprised to see him smiling softly in the weak moonlight.

“Of course I do, princess,” Otabek said, and it made Yuri’s heart flutter. The fact that he did remember. That he wasn’t just no one to the Isarian prince. He was something. Someone.

A . . . A lie. He was pretending to be someone else, and it hurt Yuri to think about that. He wanted to come out and tell Otabek that he was actually a prince, but he feared the rejection that would come with such an outing. He didn’t really care about his sexuality . . . Hell, nobody really cared about anyone’s sexuality in Anam. But there were still a few who were prejudiced against homosexuality and whatnot, and Yuri figured that capturing the heart of Isar’s only heir would backlash, especially because the kingdom needed an heir after him.

Yuri was scared of the way he was thinking. Of the way he was starting to feel about Otabek. Otabek had sort of been an asshole to him, but he couldn’t shake their encounter when they were younger. When things were much simpler and purer.

“I should get going,” Otabek said, walking over to Yuri’s door. He paused by it, about to close it, when he said, “You look tired, princess. I hope sleep finds you well.”

He shut the door, and Yuri pursed his lips, thinking about the long day he’d just had. He moved the tray to the floor and got more under the covers, bringing the sheets up to his nose and staring at the ceiling.

Yuri made sure to settle in a position that wasn’t that uncomfortable for his shoulder, and he relaxed. He closed his eyes and thought of Victor and Yuuri and whether they were alright, and he thought about his new ally Sara and her twin brother Michele. He wondered about the queen and his meeting with her tomorrow, or today depending on what time it was, and he started to feel nervous.

He turned his head to look outside and admired the stars before feeling sleepy, and he kept telling himself over and over again that it was going to be okay.

Drazak, Crael, and Erenea . . . Yuri thought about the names he and Otabek had come up with so long ago. They had spent hours pouring over books and books of names that had actually been meant for naming children.

Yuri wished that tomorrow would come soon.

 

A/N: OHHHHH LORRRDDDD. That took me so long to write. On top of my family being extremely shitty during the holidays, I got stressed out about absolutely nothing! I love anxiety! Okay but really this was a good stress-reliever, and I’m glad to be back in business. I hope this chapter satisfies all of you and paves the way for more drama and romance. It’s going just as I planned, albeit it took a while to get here, and I can’t wait to write more. Kudos and comments literally bring me to life, so please leave as many as you’d want! Or none at all! It’s okay. I hope your holidays were significantly better than mine - Until next time! (Holy shit sO MANY WORDS.)


	4. Right Thigh, Right Shoulder

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuri drinks tea with the queen, and the queen decides to spill some in return. Otabek too.

_Yuri blinked a few times, and it took him a few moments to realize that he wasn’t in bed and that he was, in fact, standing upright. He jerked away and wiped at his mouth, looking around. He was in a . . . basement?_

_The young prince tried to get a look at where he was, but it was too dark for him to see anything well. So he took a tentative step forward and instantly bumped into something wooden. He touched it briefly and then gave an experimental push. The door gave away, and Yuri pushed it more until it was wide open._

_Light poured in from the room, and Yuri covered his eyes for a few seconds, letting them adjust to the brightening room. And then it was as if the light had disappeared, or greatly dimmed, for Yuri could finally take his hand away from his eyes and look at what was in the room._

_He was surprised to see a younger, much more feminine version of himself and Otabek sitting in his bedroom, which, back then, had been filled with glamorous, shiny things. It was full of intricately-sewn blankets and gem-encrusted toys and handheld mirrors. Yuri had almost forgotten about the shelves upon shelves Yakov had had to get for all of Yuri’s small things._

_Yuri grimaced at the bright colors and leaned against the doorframe, watching his younger self pour tea for Otabek in his “living room” area. He’d been eight years old, and the Isarian prince had been around thirteen, and Yuri wanted to laugh at how different they both seemed._

_Otabek was being way more verbal and expressive, and Yuri was being very “girly.” Doing things like mixing Otabek’s tea and playing nervously with his fan. Like offering to feed Otabek sugar cubes and show him some magic even though he wasn’t that good at it yet._

_Yuri blushed as he watched his younger self obviously try to impress the Isarian prince, and he had to look away before he cringed._

_He remember this day clearly, but why was he dreaming about it?_

_Yuri heard a small scream and turned around, and his old room whipped by him in a series of flashes, and then he saw himself running down the mountain, an arrow in his right shoulder._

_He felt his mother’s hands._

 

Yuri jerked awake and instantly groaned, his right shoulder stinging.

“Fucking shit,” Yuri muttered to himself. He sat up more in bed, looking around. _Right . . . I’m in Isar._

He sighed and sat all the way up, bending his legs and leaning forward lazily, staring out his glass balcony doors. He had a clear view of the ocean, and he was amazed at how far it stretched on.

Someone knocked on his door, and he started.

“Ah, come in,” Yuri said, sitting upright and folding his hands in his lap.

Sara pushed into the room, wearing a dark red, velvety dress with long sleeves. Her hair was up in a bun, and her face and skin looked dewey, as if she’d just washed it. Yuri was surprised, to say the least. He’d been expecting her to show up in her armor.

“You clean up nice,” was all Yuri said as he got out of bed. Sara brought in a big pile of dresses and laid them down on Yuri’s bed, and Yuri stared at them, trying not to make a face.

“You don’t like them?” Sara asked, standing back. Yuri moved forward to look at them, touching the scarce beading.

“They’re so . . . plain,” Yuri mumbled, and Sara chuckled behind him.

“Of course they are,” Sara said. “Isar is known for its modest fashion.”

“Ha!” Yuri scoffed. “Krylel is known for the exact opposite.” His voice cracked when he said ‘opposite,’ and he felt himself blushing. Sara snickered, and Yuri whipped around to glare at her. “Hey! I’m-” His voice cracked again, and Yuri stopped himself from continuing, mortified.

“Oh, wow,” Sara smiled, staring down at Yuri. “This is bad timing.”

“What am I supposed to do?” Yuri asked, trying to find his feminine voice again. He was getting it back. But just barely. “The queen will definitely notice.”

“You’ll just have to wing it,” Sara shrugged.

Yuri gave her a look, and Sara puffed out her cheeks, thinking.

“Okay, well, let’s see,” she said, walking over to the dresses. She admired them as she spoke. “You can pretend to be sick.”

“The whole time I’m here?” Yuri snorted, crossing his arms.

“Hm . . .” Sara trailed off. Her face brightened, and she turned to Yuri, smiling. “I can tell them you lost your voice or something! Or that you’re shy?”

“Just tell the queen I’ve lost my voice,” Yuri waved a hand and went back to looking at the dresses.

“We’re definitely gonna have to find a dress for you to wear that, you know, makes it look like you have breasts,” Sara said, and Yuri’s face turned even redder than before.

“T-That won’t be necessary,” Yuri said, glancing down at his flat chest. Of course it was flat. He was a guy, after all. But Yuri bit the inside of his cheek, thinking.

He would definitely rock some of these dresses with a little more chest.

“I - I mean, do you have anything that would make it look like, you know . . ?” Yuri trailed off, forcing himself to stare at the dresses. He couldn’t look at Sara.

The purple-eyed girl smiled softly and walked over to Yuri’s bedroom door. “You pick a dress, and I’ll be right back with a little something that’ll help!”

Yuri looked through the dresses again and found one at the bottom of the pile. He moved all the other dresses to the floor and held up the dress he liked.

It was a silky-looking lavender dress with frills around the chest area. It also had a bunch of intricately sewn flowers on it, both on the front and back.

Yuri smiled softly at it and laid it back down on the bed, moving to take his bathrobe off. Once it was off, he wondered if he should wait for Sara to come back to get undressed, but he decided, in the end, that getting undressed now would be the quickest way to go about getting ready.

He started to take off his nightgown, and, when it was in front of him and dangling off his arms, there was a knock at the door.

_Fuck._

“Who-?”

The door opened and Yuri screeched when he saw that it was Prince Otabek. He didn’t have to worry about sounding feminine - that screech had made him sound like a five-year-old girl scared shitless.

“Princess!” Otabek whirled around in the doorframe, face burning. He swallowed thickly. “I’m sorry, I thought you would still be sleeping.”

Yuri bit his lip to keep himself from replying. He was still unsure about his voice.

Instead he threw his nightgown away and got into the pale lavender dress.

He still needed to zip it, so he walked over to Otabek and tapped his shoulder.

Otabek turned around slowly, confused, and saw Yuri’s pale back in front of him, his blonde braid moved over his left shoulder. His right shoulder had been bandaged last night, and the bandages had been wrapped under his armpit and across his chest.

“Y-Yuri?”

“The zipper,” Yuri said softly, coughing at the end to cover up any flaws there might’ve been in his voice. Otabek nodded to himself, zippering up Yuri’s dress. The Krylel’d prince turned around when it was done, looking at himself in one of the mirrors by his bed.

“Thank you,” Yuri said softly again, wishing Sara would just get back already.

“You look wonderful,” Otabek said, surprising himself. Yuri gave Otabek a small smile and nodded his head in thanks, trying to get out of talking as much as he could.

“Anyway, my mother requested you,” Otabek said, and Yuri looked back at him. Otabek was wearing something similar to what his father had worn yesterday, but his robes were green and white, sewn with thick golden thread, and he was wearing a cape that buttoned down his front and cut across his chest to drag down his shoulders and then on the floor behind him.

Yuri thought he looked handsome but remembered his somewhat rough treatment on the way here and shook his head to himself.

“Alright,” Yuri almost whispered, holding his hands and looking down. “Bring me to her.”

 

When Otabek pushed open the door for Yuri, the Krylel’d prince first noticed how airy and bright the room was. And then he noticed how much more beautiful the Isarian queen looked sitting at a golden, wiry table, practically glowing.

Yuri felt intimidated even though he knew he shouldn’t be. And Sara wasn’t here to tell the queen about him happening to “lose” his voice. So he was going to have to tough it out. By himself.

Yuri swallowed thickly and walked over to the queen slowly, remembering that he was barefoot. He sounded a lot quieter without any shoes on, and it was almost unnerving to him. Yuri’d always worn heels with dresses, and now there was no clicking. No clacking.

It made him feel like something was missing.

Yuri sat down next to the queen and looked out the windows. They were huge, spanning from the floor to the ceiling and almost all the way around the room.

“Ah, Princess Yuri, how are you?” The queen asked as if just now noticing Yuri.

“Well,” Yuri kept it brief. He didn’t want to have a voice crack. Not now. Not ever again.

“Did you sleep well?” The queen asked, sparing him a soft, admiring glance. Yuri saw Otabek closing the door and walking over to them, taking his time.

“Yes,” Yuri said, heart hammering in his chest.

“That’s good,” Aruzhan said, pouring him some tea. Her thin fingers reminded him of Lilia and how she’d always tie up some of his dresses for him. How she’d sit down with him for hours and delicately braid his growing hair. That was back when Victor had been off fighting in the Starless War and Yuri couldn’t sleep at night.

“You’re probably wondering why you’re here,” the queen said as Otabek said down across from Yuri at the small tea table. She got Yuri a cup ready and was about to grab for the tea, but Yuri went for it.

“Let me, Queen Aruzhan,” Yuri said, managing to somehow not have his voice crack.

“Why, thank you,” Aruzhan said, giving her son side-eye. “I’m surprised you didn’t offer, Otabek. I am your mother, after all. And we have the Krylel’d princess here to entertain.”

“Yes, I’m sorry I didn’t offer sooner,” Otabek said with a boring stare. He was looking out at Isar, tracing the line of the city with quick eyes.

Yuri felt bad for him, but he didn’t know why. He shook his head and started to serve everyone with practiced fingers, pouring everyone’s tea.

“Anyway, Yuri, I want to tell you what’s going on here,” Aruzhan said, and Yuri watched as a certain light left her eyes. “Ever since the Starless War, there’s been . . . rumors about a certain magical presence in Krylel. After Prince Yuuri’s parents were assassinated, he threw Anam in a state of darkness. I’m sure you remember this. It’s called ‘starless,’ after all.”

Aruzhan was right. After Yuuri’s parents were assassinated, he’d gotten so mad that he’d cursed Anam with what seemed like eternal darkness. He was mainly doing it because no one in Anam was admitting to the assassination of his parents. 

And then, on a hunch, he’d launched an attack on Raes.

Yuri nodded at the queen, still trying to stay as quiet as possible.

“And then Prince Yuuri started going downhill from there. Poor thing. I do feel bad for him, you know,” Aruzhan said, and a tired, faraway look swam in her eyes as she looked at her son. Otabek was still looking at Isar, oblivious. “Regardless, there’s been more rumors about how this raw power in Krylel could belong to Yuuri. Aslan was nervous about Yuuri, so we sent spies to Krylel. I’m sorry, Yuri, but we were so worried about another state of darkness.”

Yuri nodded.

“So we sent spies to Krylel, and they figured out that your father was planning to attack us,” Aruzhan said bluntly, and Yuri almost dropped his stirring spoon. Otabek blinked and turned slightly to stare at him.

“I asked, but he never told me why,” Yuri said in a rushed whisper, trying to keep his voice low. His voice had almost cracked. Almost.

“Of course he wouldn’t,” Aruzhan said. “You’re just a girl. And Krylel is notorious for being sexist, don’t you agree?”

Yuri nodded again.

“Anyhow, we sent Otabek and his men and women to Krylel to capture Yuuri because we thought that your father was going to use his power to attack us,” Aruzhan said, playing with the many sparkling rings on her fingers. Her bracelets clinked together as she moved her arms. “One of the plans was to capture Yuuri, and the other plan was to capture your older brother. We never in a million years thought about capturing you, or that it would come down to that, but apparently Otabek saw it fit to capture you in the end. It was a quick decision, apparently. Just one-”

“Mother, I think we can move on.”

Yuri stared at the two royal Isarians expectantly, eyes big. “What? Did I miss something?”

Aruzhan brought out her fan and covered some of her face, but Yuri could see that her eyes were tilted up, crinkled in a smile. “My son doesn’t want you to know-”

“Mother.”

“-that he was the one that decided to shoot you,” Aruzhan said. “Aslan-”

Otabek stood up from the tea table abruptly, causing it to shake. Yuri grabbed its edges to still it.

Even though the tea table was still, Yuri felt like his whole world was careening sideways. Otabek had shot him? As in, had personally decided to shoot him?

Otabek was glaring at his mother.

Aruzhan was sitting back in her chair, keeping her fan up in a sly manner.

“You were going to have to tell her at some point,” Aruzhan said.

“I can’t believe you,” Otabek almost snarled at his mother. Yuri froze, feeling as if he were intruding on a personal argument. His right shoulder stung just from figuring out that it had been Otabek that had shot him. On purpose. He’d targeted him specifically.

Yuri’s mind swam with thoughts of betrayal. Hate. Anger. He stared down at his bare feet, trying to figure out what to do.

He wanted to strangle Otabek. He wanted to hit him. Throw him away.

“You shot me?” Yuri asked softly, looking up at the Isarian prince. Aruzhan glanced at Yuri and then looked up at her son expectantly.  _“On purpose?”_

“It was part of the plan,” Otabek turned away from the table. “. . . There were many.”

Yuri gripped the tea table with shaking hands, and it felt like bile was rising in his throat. But it was just his anger. Spells waiting to be shouted at full force.

“Oh, looks like we’ve made you angry,” Aruzhan said, placing one of her hands next to Yuri’s. “I just felt like I had an obligation to let you know. After all-”

“Just stop it!” Otabek shouted.

Yuri watched as Otabek turned around and threw the tea table to the side. Yuri’s eyes widened as the tea spilled into the air for a few seconds before splashing on the floor. Otabek panted, brow furrowed. He looked at his mother.

Aruzhan stood up and put her fan away. “For the love of Our Holy Mother,” she muttered before walking away. “Princess Yuri, my dear, follow me.”

Yuri got up and made his way around the mess and Otabek.

He caught up to the queen.

“What?” He whispered, glancing at Otabek over his left shoulder.

“Please excuse my son,” Aruzhan said, reaching for the door. She opened it and slipped away without another word, and Yuri stood there, dumbfounded.

_What the hell just happened?_

Yuri wanted to follow the queen, but she’d already disappeared down the hallway. And Yuri wanted to go back to his room, but he couldn’t remember the way.

He turned to face Otabek again, and he saw the Isarian prince looking at his future kingdom again.

Yuri took a few calming breaths and walked over to the tea table and the mess, and he got down on his knees and started to pick up the porcelain and food, moving it to one corner. He wanted to use magic, but he remembered that nobody here knew that he could use it yet. 

That element of surprise might come in handy later.

Otabek mumbled something, and Yuri looked up at him.

“What?”

“What’re you doing?” Otabek asked louder.

“I - I’m cleaning,” Yuri said, ducking his head when the Isarian prince looked down at him. Yuri heard some rustling and then Otabek was down on his knees next to him, using his cape to soak up the spilled tea.

They worked in silence until Otabek said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t want to hurt you.”

Yuri swallowed his anger and chanced a glance at Otabek. He was looking at him.

“My father . . . That was his plan. Not mine,” Otabek said, looking down. He continued to pick up bits of glass and porcelain.

“But-” Yuri bit his lip.

“But?”

_You could’ve easily gotten Yuuri. Or Victor. Or Yakov. Whatever happened to the second group that went after them? They never captured them, right? So why me? Is this your way of showing affection?_

“Nothing,” Yuri said, using part of Otabek’s cape to continue wiping up the tea.

“The . . . What my mother said was true,” Otabek said, meticulously organizing the glass and porcelain in small rows. Yuri watched him. “We all felt like there was a big ball of power in Krylel. Something massive. But we had all collectively felt that way before the Starless War. It only intensified when Prince Yuuri got there.”

“So?”

“Do you remember when we were younger?”

Yuri froze. “Pardon?”

“When we were younger, you showed me your room,” Otabek said, and Yuri felt like he was having déjà vu. His dream. Of course.

“I - I remember,” Yuri said slowly.

“You were serving me tea, and you - we were having a good time,” Otabek said, a small smile on his face. “And then you accidentally spilled tea on my thigh. And it was still so,  _so_  hot. Scalding.”

It was as if Yuri’s dream was taking off where it had left off. Yuri had been serving Otabek, and then he’d spilled tea all over his right thigh.

“Right thigh, right shoulder,” Yuri muttered, eyes widening.

“I know . . . I know you’re good at magic,” Otabek said, leaning back on his heels. “And I - I just  _know_  you’re the presence everyone says is coming from Krylel.”

“What? That’s absurd,” Yuri said, and his voice cracked. He slapped a hand over his mouth, but Otabek didn’t seem to care. He wasn’t even paying attention. Just fixing his rows of glass and porcelain.

“You healed my burn seconds later,” Otabek said. “You were humming something under your breath . . . You were crying, panicking. I don’t remember much of it. But I remember you smelled just like the ocean. Fresh fruit. Something . . . else.”

“That’s - No,” Yuri said, standing up shakily. “That’s impossible. My magic doesn’t even smell like anything.”

“And then afterwards,” Otabek said, standing up, “I found this in my pocket.”

Otabek took out a small necklace. It was a blue gem, shaped smoothly like a tear, looping back around the chain so that it would never fall off it.

“It . . . It reminds me of your magic,” Otabek said. He looked Yuri right in the eye. “And I’ve been having dreams of destroying it. Unleashing something powerful. I’ve been having nightmares about Isar being burned to the ground because of you . . . But I can’t do anything about it. That moment you healed me was also the moment I felt as if I . . . I needed to do something for you in return.”

Otabek handed Yuri the necklace, and Yuri took it with shaking hands. He looked at Otabek. He was slightly smaller than him. Just slightly.

“Destroy it,” Otabek said.

“I - I can’t do th-” Yuri stopped himself as he felt something jolt through him. A surge of magic just from touching the gem. He felt comforting arms wrapping around him from behind, and he shuddered, moving away from his original spot. They felt like his mother’s arms. “Stop it! Get away!”

He threw the gem on the floor and backed up, breathing hard. And then he realized he’d sounded like a boy.

“Yuri,” Otabek breathed, staring at him like he was a stranger. “Are you-?”

He was cut off by the loud howling of wolves in Isar.

“Shit,” Otabek cursed, looking around in a panic. “Look, Yuri, I have no idea what the fuck’s going on. I just know I need to protect you. Whether you’re a girl . . . or a boy. And even though destroying that gem is going to ruin everything, I have to do it.”

“No!” Yuri shouted, not caring about his voice anymore. He lunged for the gem, but Otabek slid on the ground and snatched it up. The castle started to shake, and the howling got louder. “Otabek, stop it! Nothing good is in that gem! I can feel it!”

“It smells just like your magic,” Otabek pushed himself up. Yuri was on him in seconds, trying to pry the gem from his hands. “If I destroy it, your magic . . . It’ll come back to you! And if Raes suddenly decided to attack Isar, you’re going to need all the magic you can get.”

Yuri stopped trying to get the gem and looked at the city through the big windows. He swallowed thickly, panicking as he heard more howling. He started to hear screaming.

Otabek put the gem on the floor and looked for something to crush the gem with.

He ran back over to the tea table and broke off a leg. He ran back over to the gem and a panicking Yuri and smashed the gem. As soon as the leg of the tea table made contact with the gem, a bright light exploded. And then it disappeared.

Yuri started to smell the ocean, fresh fruit . . . And something else? His fingers went numb with power, and he felt like his mother was hugging him from behind, whispering in his ear.

_“I’ve been keeping this from you, Yuri,” she whispered. “It would’ve destroyed you as a child . . . Don’t let it destroy you now.”_

 

A/N: FUCK ME UP FAM. Okay, first of all, this chapter came flying out of nowhere. It’s long as shit, and I feel like I wrote this one really well. Second of all, AHHHHH DRAMA. The plot hella thickened in this chapter. (Oh, SHE THICK.) ANYWAY, I really hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Comments and kudos are literally the fucking best. 

[tumblr](https://opalopalopal.tumblr.com)

Also, Yuri’s dress. (Far right.)

[Yuri's dress](http://www.jld-studios.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/2016-trends1.png)


	5. Nirr Ruya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yuri remembers more of his past, his mother is introduced to the story, and Raes pays a visit to Isar.

“Nirr ril . . . Nirr rdesr,” _Svetlana muttered to herself. She stopped writing a letter to her mother for a moment to look up and watch her sons run around in the garden. It was a complete mess of flowers and colors. But it was beautiful._

_She watched her younger son Yuri run around in his flimsy dress, holding fistfuls of flowers and mulch. Even though summer in Krylel only lasted a month or two, and even though Yakov didn’t want to bother the gardeners, Svetlana had been determined to make something grow in the short time frame that was their “summer.”_

_The young Queen of Krylel smiled to herself before she continued to write her letter._

_She’d planted_ surars, rairesrs, and neairaiars. _All flowers she knew would come out fast and bright._

_And then there was the rose. A blue flower that her older son Victor loved the most for its uniqueness._

_“Vicchan! Vicchan! Give it back!” Yuri shouted, and Svetlana looked up again to see Victor running around with Yuri’s flowers. She was about to say something to him when Yakov sat down next to her on the patio, and she looked at him._

_“Yakov.”_

_“Yes, my love?”_

_“Are you . . . done with your meeting?” She asked, glancing down at her letter._

_“Of course. It went . . . well. As well as a meeting about_ that _can go.”_

_Victor crouched down to give Yuri his flowers back, and Yuri’s sweet, sweet laughter bubbled out._

_Svetlana blinked down at her letter, thinking. Yakov and her were talking about Yuri’s magic._

_On the night of his birth, some of the smaller temples in Krylel worshipping Krallual, the Goddess of Magic, had collapsed. The next morning, when Svetlana had learned about what had happened, she’d been horrified._

_As time passed, Svetlana had forgotten about that day. Then, a year ago, the rebuilt temples had collapsed again. A large earthquake had rocked the small kingdom and had ruined just a few buildings. But the temples had been utterly destroyed. They’d collapsed through and through, and there was no way of salvaging them._

_Today, Yakov had been meeting some city officials about the temples and his second son Yuri. All the while he’d been glancing down at very old paintings of Krallual, trying to figure out what was going on. The Goddess of Magic had dark, dark skin with vermillion undertones. An encounter with her had never been recorded, but most paintings presented her with rounded shoulders and gold eyes._

_Yakov couldn’t get her face out of his head._

_He and the city officials had talked about her and his son Yuri, and if there was some connection._

_“There’s got to be one,” one city official had said._

_Yakov pursed his lips and looked at his wife._

_She looked at him expectantly._

_“It wasn’t . . . It didn’t go like I wanted it to,” Yakov said, sitting down. Svetlana put her quill down, forgetting all about the letter to her mother. “The city officials were more concerned about the temples than Yuri. A few did try to bring up Yuri’s growing magic and Krallual.”_

_The king and queen didn’t say anything for a few seconds. They simply listened to their kids play._

_“I have a feeling that Krallual is behind this,” Svetlana said. Yakov stared at his wife, shocked. “Is behind the earthquake and Yuri’s magic. I can already smell something whenever he uses it. It’s very faint, but it’s there. I can . . . I think I can smell the ocean. Sometimes.” She paused before looking up at her husband. “We can’t pretend something like this is natural, Yakov.”_

_“But why would Krallual destroy her own temples?” Yakov asked, rubbing at his tired face. “Why? It doesn’t make any sense.”_

_“Maybe she’s trying to be forgotten,” Svetlana said, looking over to her sons. Victor and Yuri were making bouquets of flowers. They would pluck flowers first and then organize them on the ground, making sure not to hurt themselves on the occasional thorn._

_“We’ll figure it out, my love,” Yakov said, taking Svetlana’s hand in his. “Don’t worry.”_

 

_A year later when Yuri was four, he’d accidentally set his duvet on fire. Svetlana had asked Victor to read him a story, and only a few minutes had passed before Victor came running into his parents’ room, asking for help._

_Svetlana scooped Yuri up into her arms and held him close as Yakov used his magic to put the fire out. The queen stared at her older son, searching for an answer, but Victor looked just as confused and as shocked as she felt._

_She swallowed thickly and pressed a quick kiss to the top of Yuri’s head._

 

_A year after that, tensions began to rise between the kingdoms in Anam. Yakov started to talk to Victor about politics, albeit nothing serious, but Yuri was still angry. He threw a temper tantrum so bad it caused an earthquake._

_That night Svetlana sent Yuri to bed. She kissed him goodnight and wandered around the castle until she found Yakov in his study. She lingered by the doorway before she decided to kiss him goodnight. Then she peeked into Victor’s room to see him sleeping soundly. She whispered a few words of farewell and then left._

_She hurried back to her room and pushed in, immediately thinking about what she was going to do that night. She grabbed the spell she’d copied from a book, and then she grabbed a necklace from one of her drawers._

_She got back to Yuri’s room and pushed in as quietly as she could, and she hoped and prayed that she was doing the right thing._

_That night she sealed Yuri’s magic in the necklace with a powerful spell. It was a spell that would make Yuri’s magic dormant until he made contact with the person he was fated to fall in love with. They would act as a champion. A shield for Yuri._

_Svetlana knew that Anam was falling apart, so she wished and wished and_ wished _that her son’s magic would stay hidden until the country sorted itself out._

_Yuri’s magic had been sealed, and his mother disappeared that night, along with one of her favorite necklaces._

 

It was as if Yuri’s head was simultaneously being pried open and slammed shut. 

He could remember his mother speaking in the ancient Krylel’d tongue. _Nirr ril. Nirr rdesr._ My sun. My stars. That’s what she would call Victor and him. _Nirr ruya_ \- my love - for his father. _Ruya_ also meant “everything,” and Yuri remembered thinking that _“ruya”_ meaning both “love” and “everything” was so, so sweet.

Yuri remembered waking up and searching for his mother. A pain blossomed throughout his chest, and he pressed a few cold fingers against his exposed skin, rubbing. Staring at Otabek in complete shock.

“Yuri . . . Are you a guy?” Otabek asked,.

Yuri’s breath hitched. “I - I - Otabek, I can explain.” Yuri stepped towards the Isarian prince but stopped when he heard howling again. His eyes widened. “Otabek, I’ve never seen a werewolf before. Are they big? Scary?”

“We have to leave,” Otabek said, shaking his head. He grabbed Yuri’s hand and dragged him to the hallway, and he looked left and right before taking the stairs to the right. The castle shuddered when they were at the beginning of the next floor, and Otabek put a hand on the wall to steady himself. Yuri squeezed his eyes shut, panicking.

“Otabek? Are they really that bad?” Yuri asked as they hurried down the narrow hallway. It was less clean than the others in the castle, and Yuri figured it was probably because nobody stayed up here.

“They’re not anything we can’t handle,” Otabek said, glancing over his shoulder at Yuri. His mind was racing. He hadn’t expected the princess to actually be, well, a prince. Some of Yuri’s hair was escaping its braid, framing his pale and nervous face.

Otabek could practically smell Yuri’s magic rolling off him in waves even though the young prince wasn’t using it yet, and it scared Otabek. How could someone possess so much power? Why had it been sealed away in the first place?

“Are you sure?” Yuri asked.

“Of course,” Otabek said, letting go of Yuri’s hand. He peered into some of the dusty rooms, looking for a weapon. Anything. He pushed into one room after deciding it might have something useful in it, and Yuri waited in the hallway, holding his own hands nervously. Otabek rifled through the antique weapons, trying to calm himself down.

He didn’t know where his parents were, and he didn’t know why Raes was attacking. To get Yuri? He had no idea. And Otabek couldn’t stop thinking about how Yuri was actually a guy. After pining after the Krylel’d “princess” for more than seven years, Otabek felt silly. Betrayed.

He found a dusty sword and blew on it after taking it out of its sheath.

“This’ll do,” Otabek said, turning to Yuri to ask him something. But he was gone. “What-?” Otabek raced out to the hallway and saw Yuri peering into one of the other rooms. “You can’t just disappear like that, Yuri.”

Yuri blinked back at him, just realizing he’d caused Otabek to worry. “Oh. Sorry.”

“Th-That’s fine,” Otabek swallowed thickly. “Now, come on. We have to find my parents before the werewolves get to the castle.” They raced back down the stairs, and Yuri stared at Otabek’s sword warily. It didn’t look sharpened at all. “My parents are probably planning to escape through the tunnels. I hope you’re not claustrophobic.”

“I’m not,” Yuri said as they continued to jog through the castle, trying to get back down to the first floor. The closer they got, the more chaos they passed. Servants fleeing back to their rooms, screaming. Guards abandoning their posts.

“Shit,” Otabek seethed.

He started running faster, and Yuri struggled to keep up with him. He’d never had to exercise a day in his life, and it was getting to him. But he kept to himself and panted as they made their way to the first floor.

Otabek’s parents were being guarded by a great deal of guards, and Yuri could see Sara and her twin brother Michele by the front of the castle, yelling at people to close the large doors faster.

“Otabek, are you sure everything’ll be okay?” Yuri asked. He was out of breath, and a cold sweat had broken out on his forehead. His right shoulder was stinging. Had the wound reopened?

Prince Otabek looked down at Yuri as they made their way over to his parents, and he felt the sudden urge to protect - to fight for the weak Krylel’d prince. Even though his magic was rolling off him in heavy, thick waves . . . It worried Otabek that he was still attracted to Yuri after finding out he wasn’t actually a princess, but he’d have to deal with his feelings later.

“Mother! Father!” Otabek shouted as he made his way over to them. Yuri got shoved into a lot and ended up falling on Otabek. The Isarian prince caught him quickly and his parents looked at him, confused.

His father spoke up first. “We’re leaving soon,” he said. “To the tunnels.”

“Yes, Beka, we’re being escorted down right now,” Aruzhan said, grabbing her son’s hands. Yuri had to stand up. He looked around, trying not to panic. He wished his older brother was here to get him out of this mess.

“Don’t they have to close the doors first?” Otabek asked.

“Exactly,” Aslan said, trying to speak over the chaos. “We’re going down right now.”

“But aren’t they cutting off the civilians?” Otabek asked. And then it dawned on him. His parents were closing the doors now. To protect themselves and everyone in the castle. “. . . Oh.”

“We’re left with no other choice,” Aruzhan said, almost hysterical at this point. She started dragging her son to the door that led to the tunnels. Otabek looked behind him for Yuri and saw him standing there, staring at the closing doors.

Yuri ran over to Sara and Michele and the large closing doors, and he stood right between the doors, legs shaking.

“Yuri, move!” Sara shouted. She couldn’t believe the Krylel’d prince was standing there, in front of her, keeping her and others from closing the doors. “The werewolves-!”

“There are still people running to the castle!” Yuri shouted. “We can’t just leave them behind!”

As he spoke, people ran past him and into the castle. Mothers holding children. Fathers holding sacks of food, their sons’ hands. Yuri looked over his shoulder at Isar. At how it was burning.

His fingers tingled with unused magic, but he couldn’t remember the spells he’d learned as a child. Maybe he didn’t need them?

 _That’s only for people who are gifted . . ._ Yuri trailed off, thinking to himself. He pushed the doors open after a few seconds, his hands vibrating with magic. His body shook with the effort, but his magic kicked in, and the doors swung open, causing the guards to move out of the way.

People still ran into the castle, thanking Yuri along the way.

“Yuri!” Otabek shouted, his mother still trying to drag him down into the tunnels. “Yuri! Come on!”

The steady stream of people running downstairs was making it harder to see Yuri, but he could just catch a glimpse of his blonde hair and how it rose around his shoulders, floating. The braid undid itself until the waves cascaded freely down his back.

Otabek swallowed thickly and jerked away from his mother before sending her an apologetic look. Her face fell as he turned away from her and ran over to Yuri, unsheathing his antique sword.

The howling got louder, and Otabek felt terrified for the third time in his life.

People kept streaming into the castle with their children, and Yuri stood firmly, hands clenched.

Otabek walked around him and touched a tentative hand to his good shoulder.

“. . . Yuri?”

The Krylel’d prince blinked and looked up at him. “I-” Yuri’s eyes widened, and he inhaled sharply, shoving Otabek down. Otabek was surprised at his strength, and the wind got knocked out of him as he got slammed into the ground. He opened his eyes for a second to see a werewolf pounce over where he’d just been standing.

Yuri struggled to push up, feeling as if he’d used too much energy and magic to open the doors by himself.

Otabek touched his good shoulder gently, helping him up. Everyone stood still as the werewolf howled in the main hall of the castle. Yuri glanced down at Otabek’s sword and grabbed the base of it until he hissed in pain.

A fine line of blood trickled over his fist, and Otabek tried to get him to stop.

“Yuri-”

Yuri spat out a spell, but it didn’t sound like his voice. The sword glowed and sharpened itself, and runes engraved themselves all over the sword. Even to the tip. Yuri let go of it, and his knees wobbled. His eyes rolled back, and Sara stepped forward to catch him, her armor clinking.

Sara and Otabek exchanged a look before they turned to the werewolf.

It bared its teeth.

Otabek recognized the gold paint around its eyes, running down its back to its tail. It was Prince JJ of Raes.

 

 

 

A/N: Ahhhh, so here it is! More! I have a feeling it's not that good, but I like it nonetheless. I still have ten more chapters to do everything I want to do, and all questions will be answered in due time. I've gotten so deep in this fandom. All the fan fiction people write warms my heart so much!! Anyway, I go back to college the 15th, so things might slow down. But I appreciate your comments and kudos and support on this fic. It means the world to me - it really does. Thank you.

Also! Meant to add that this is what I imagine [Krylel to look like during the winter](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/7b/fb/c0/7bfbc0b3dac112a39147efe6f32aeff3.jpg).


	6. Things Fall Apart

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things really do fall apart.

_Nirr ruya, nirr rdesr . . ._ (My love, my stars . . .)

 _Nirr ril, nirr haesd . . ._ (My sun, my heart . . .)

 

Yuri kept thinking about his mother's endearments. They rattled around in his head like the small enchantments he’d been taught as a kid. He blinked slowly, thinking about his mother's hands, his father's loud voice . . . His brother's lavender-scented magic.

“-ri! Yuri!”

The Krylel’d prince could hear Sara shouting at him, but she felt far away.

And then he was jolted.

It felt like he was coming up for air, and he inhaled sharply. He opened his eyes, and he saw Sara’s face above his, thick brows drawn together in concern. She was suited up in his some of her leather armor, but otherwise she wasn’t wearing anything protective.

“Sara,” Yuri said, sitting up slowly. Sara helped him, and she crouched down next to him. Yuri took in the werewolf standing in the main hall of the castle, and he froze. It was _huge._ He’d never seen a werewolf before.

It was slightly taller than Otabek, and its mouth looked big enough to bite someone’s head off and swallow it whole.

“What do we do?” Yuri whispered.

The werewolf that was painted in streaks of gold snarled at Yuri, and Otabek stepped in front of him.

Michele ran over to him. “With all due respect, Prince Otabek, you should be escaping.”

“I have to stay,” Otabek said through gritted teeth. The werewolf seemed to understand him and walked towards the Isarian prince without making a sound. Otabek glanced back at Yuri with a slightly panicked look on his face. “Sara. Michele. Get Yuri out of here.”

 _That_ got Yuri up on his feet.

“What?!” He shouted, not caring about his voice anymore. Michele blinked at him. Sara gaped at him. A few bystanders started whispering. Yuri gritted his teeth but grabbed the Isarian prince’s arm, pulling him close. “You _can’t_ do this alone.”

“I’m not,” Otabek said softly, raising his sword slightly. Yuri glanced at the sword and then looked back to Otabek, worried. The werewolf was getting closer to him, and Otabek jerked out of Yuri’s grip. His slender fingers slid over Otabek’s arm, and Yuri’s eyes widened.

He watched Otabek walk away from him, and Yuri felt anxious. He reached out to grab Otabek again but thought better of it, letting his hand dangle in the air for a few seconds.

“Prince Jean-Jacques Leroy,” Otabek said, raising his sword. The werewolf stopped, and Yuri looked back and forth between Otabek and the supposed prince of Raes.

“ _That’s_ JJ?” Yuri asked. “I thought he was supposed to be . . . You know . . . _Bigger_.”

The werewolf growled at Yuri, so Sara grabbed Yuri back. Otabek stepped towards JJ, gripping the sword with two hands.

“Call off the attack, JJ,” Otabek said. “You won’t get anything out of it. Let’s talk about it. Man to man. Face to face.”

The growling stopped slightly.

“Please, JJ,” Otabek said stepping tentatively towards JJ once more. “Call off your men. I don’t want to fight you.”

JJ’s werewolf ears pressed back against his skull, but he hunched forward and started shifting until he was a human again. Yuri blinked a few times, shocked by the transformation. He expected Prince JJ to be completely naked, but a golden cloth of sorts floated and settled down on his hips, knotting on the right side. His skin was marred with an insane number of scars and bite marks, and Yuri wondered how he’d gotten all of them.

_Probably at the end of the Starless War._

“I’m as you requested, my friend,” JJ said, gesturing to his body. Yuri could tell he was trying to act polite, but he looked agitated. It was all over his face. “A human. _Like you_.”

“I’m a little different, Prince JJ,” Otabek said, lowering his sword.

“Ah, yes, _the_ Shadowhunter,” JJ said, waving a hand as he walked over to Prince Otabek. “The one who hunts shadows.”

“JJ,” Otabek warned.

“Yes, I’m sorry,” JJ said, but he didn’t look sorry. “I’ll call off my men as soon as I have Yuri Plisetsky in my possession.” He stopped walking a few feet away from Otabek, and people continued to clamor into the tunnels. Yuri froze, and Sara grabbed Yuri’s arm again, ready to bolt with him at Otabek’s command.

“Ah, my lady, no need to rush things,” JJ said, gesturing to Sara. “I intend on seeing this through.”

Yuri realized it was a threat and tried not to panic. Surely Otabek wouldn’t give him up. Surely.

“I don’t _intend_ on giving you the princess,” Otabek said, raising the sword again. JJ smirked. “If you want to take her, then fight me. But I’m telling you right now that it won’t end well for you.”

“It wouldn’t end well for anyone,” JJ shrugged, scratching at his face. He stared at Yuri over Otabek’s shoulder, and Yuri met his gaze, standing up straight. “I mean, I suppose we could ask the princess herself.”

“There’ll be no need,” Otabek said before Yuri could say anything. The Isarian prince glanced back at Yuri over his shoulder. Yuri watched him closely, expecting something to happen. Something bad.

Sure, Isar was already burning down and Raes was attacking, but Yuri felt like something worse had yet to come.

“Ota-”

“Stop,” Otabek warned in a low voice. Yuri bristled but didn’t say anything else. He couldn’t tell if Otabek was mad at him or trying to protect him. Either way, he didn’t like the way he was acting.

“We are looking for the power our prophets claimed was here . . . Waiting for us to take,” JJ said. “Although we Raesád respect you Isarians, we have come to take what is rightfully ours.”

Otabek gave him a questioning look.

“The power, Prince Otabek . . .” JJ sighed. He picked at his nails for a few moments before looking up at Yuri. Otabek moved in between them so that JJ had to look at him. It was JJ’s turn to give Otabek a questioning look. “. . . We Raesád practice the Krylel’d religion along with ours, and we incorporate gods . . . Sometimes we steal them. But that’s not the point, Otabek. The point is that our prophets have all claimed that Krallual is here. Or, at least, her power is. And we have come to take it back to Raes, where it belongs.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Otabek said.

But Yuri had a feeling he himself knew what they were talking about. He’d heard rumors about Krallual. His mother had forbidden anyone to talk about her within the Krylel’d palace walls. Did his powers have something to do with Krallual? Did they come from her? Was Yuri chosen?

So many thoughts ran through his mind that he missed some of JJ and Otabek’s conversation. He snapped his head up, listening again.

“Our prophets claim Krallual’s power is in a young boy of fifteen years. Perhaps sixteen,” JJ shrugged. “He’ll smell like the ocean and fresh fruit.”

Yuri’s froze as JJ inhaled and exhaled a few times, and Otabek swallowed thickly, just realizing what was going on. JJ was scenting the air. And Yuri was right behind him.

Otabek had always wondered why Yuri’s mother Svetlana had sheltered him so much, and now he understood why. She was keeping him from the werewolves. She was protecting him from the Raesád.

Some werewolves can scent the magical scent of a person without them having to use it.

Some can discern a person’s gender.

And some can tell the difference between truths and lies.

JJ’s brow furrowed, and Otabek skirted back to Yuri and grabbed his hand.

“We have to go,” Otabek said, and JJ stood still, confused.

“But-!”

“No, Yuri!” Otabek whispered. He wanted to shake Yuri. “He knows you’re a-”

“Boy . . .” JJ trailed off, and the blonde hair on Yuri’s arms rose. He didn’t like the way JJ was looking at him. “You’re a boy . . ! Of fifteen? No! You’re turning sixteen soon, Prince Yuri!” JJ threw his head back and cackled, and it turned into growling.

Yuri made a pathetic sound in the back of his throat, and Otabek yanked him away from the castle. Sara followed them, and Michele, although he was upset, followed them. They ran away from JJ right as he threw himself forward and transformed into a werewolf, and Yuri glanced at the Raesád prince over his shoulder, panting.

For once he was glad he wasn’t wearing heels.

They skirted through the burning city, picking small alley ways so JJ couldn’t get to them without running through buildings.

“How did he find out?!” Yuri shouted over the commotion. A few families ran by, too preoccupied with the chaos to notice their prince running away with the Krylel’d princess and two of his guards. JJ growled and howled. His calls were answered, and the kingdom sounded like a forest, and Yuri felt like he was in the wild for the first time ever.

Otabek stopped by the corner of a house, peeking around the corner. He was sweating. The fires were smoldering the city at an alarming rate.

The Isarian prince looked at Yuri. His brow furrowed, and, when he spoke, he had to look away. “Your mother sheltered you from the Raesád because they can scent a person’s gender.”

Yuri felt like he’d been slapped. All those times the Raesád had been invited to Krylel Yuri’s mother Svetlana had lied about Yuri being sick, had shoved him up in his room and locked him away. Yuri never understood why. Until now.

“She . . .” Yuri trailed off.

“Excuse me, but what the _fuck_ is going on here?!” Michele seethed. He looked at Yuri. “You’re a dude?!”

“I am a _prince_ ,” Yuri snapped, standing up straight.

“Yeah, but . . .” Michelle looked back and forth between Otabek and Yuri before deciding to just keep his mouth shut.

“He’s a prince, Mickey,” Sara said, swatting at him.

“Ow!”

“Sh!” Otabek shushed his guards. He looked around the corner of the house again before grabbing Yuri’s hand and bolting across the street to one of Isar’s finest taverns. He slammed into the door, and it flew open, and Otabek continued to drag Yuri to the back of the tavern where there was a spiral staircase.

They stopped at the top of them, staring at each other in silence.

Yuri glanced down at Otabek’s hand on his wrist, and he felt something staticky building there. One quick look at Otabek told Yuri the Isarian prince could feel it too.

“Look, Yuri, we’re going down into the tunnels,” Otabek said, and Sara and Michele waited for them to finish talking at a respectable distance. “I don’t know what’s going to happen from here on out. JJ obviously thinks you have Krallual’s power, and his werewolves are all over the city. These tunnels don’t leave the city - they only lead to the outskirts of it. He’s probably going to have people watching for runaways. We’ll - We’ll need to stay underground for a while. Are you okay with that?”

“Yeah,” Yuri breathed, but his heart was racing.

And then an explosion of glass and wood erupted behind Yuri, and it pelted his back and shoulders, his head and the backs of his arms. He screamed and covered his head.

But suddenly he was moving. Being lifted. He was in the mouth of a werewolf.

Yuri shrieked and pressed against the wet muzzle of the werewolf yanking him up and out of the tavern, and he desperately tried to find Otabek, desperately tried to seek him out. He tried to close his eyes to think of a spell. Yuri tried to think of anything. He tried to focus on his emotions and shove them down so he could use at least some of his magic, but he was too petrified to think about using magic.

His nerves were unsettled. His whole world shifted as the werewolf threw him to the side, and he rolled on the cobblestone road, yelping when the rolling upset his shoulder wound. When he finally stopped, and tried to push up, JJ was there, yanking at his hair.

“My, my,” JJ spat. “Prince Yuri. I finally get to meet you.”

 

Katsuki Yuuri was sitting alone in a beautiful room in Raes, shackled to a plush couch and admiring his robes. They were skimpy and showed off a lot of his body, but he didn’t care. He was trying to distract himself from thinking about Victor and where he was when the doors to the room were thrown open.

Yuuri heard a familiar cry of surprise and anger, and he looked over the top of the couch to see Victor’s younger brother Yuri being thrown into the room. Powerful Raesád runes had been painted hastily over Yuri’s skin to prevent him from using magic, and he was in a tattered lavender dress.

“Yuri!” Yuuri finally found his voice. He tried to run over to him, but his shackles burned against his skin the farther away from the couch he got. The doors closed again, and they were left in silence. Yuri wasn’t moving. Wouldn’t move.

“Yuri, you have to get up,” Yuuri whispered, looking around nervously. Nobody else was in the room except for them, but he was still paranoid. “. . . Yuri!”

Yuri let out a shuddering sob, and Yuuri watched as the young prince’s shoulders started to shake. He noted the bloodied bandages draping off his right shoulder. They were messy. Had been tampered with.

“Yuri, come over here,” Yuuri said gently. He knelt on the ground, leaning back on his heels. “I can’t move any farther from the couch. Come here, Yuri, come here.”

“They . . !” Yuri choked on another sob as he tried to push himself up again. He failed but tried again, and he pushed himself up and crawled over to his brother’s concubine. Lover. Whatever they were. “They abandoned me, Yuuri!”

Yuuri squeezed his eyes shut and tried to think of how to comfort the young prince.

“Sh, Yuri, come here,” he said again. His voice was less soft and more commanding. The young prince needed to stop crying before he made himself sick.

Yuri sniffled a few times before he finally got to Yuri, and the vampire gently pulled him up into a sitting position. Yuuri looked at the bruises on Yuri’s face and the tears in his dress. He tried not to stare at the ugly Raesád runes all over Yuri’s forehead and neck and arms, but he couldn’t help it.

“Why didn’t Otabek . . . come after . . . me?” Yuri continued to sob. “He probably hates me . . . now that he knows I’m . . . a boy!”

“Sh, calm down,” Yuuri whispered, wiping at Yuri’s bruised face. “JJ must’ve figured out you’re a boy . . . Am I right?”

Yuri nodded, too busy sniffling.

“Let’s get you cleaned up,” Yuuri said, reaching for the vase of water next to his couch. He ripped part of his robes up and dunked them into the water. And then he went to work, scrubbing at Yuri’s tear-stained face gently.

Once the Raesád runes had done their job they could be washed away.

“Even though they’re gone,” Yuuri said, wringing the cloth on the floor because he didn’t give a fuck, “you’ll still be powerless, Yuri.”

“I figured,” the young prince hiccuped. He let Yuuri wash his face and neck and arms, all the while staring numbly out the large glass windows in the room, staring at Raes, surprised at how humid it was.

“Did they do anything to you?” Yuuri asked.

“. . . No, not really,” Yuri mumbled, looking down. Yuuri wanted to press him further but decided not to. He’d had a long day.

“I know you hate the smell of vampires, Yuri, but come and sit down with me,” he said in the gentlest voice he could manage. Vampires were natural charmers for romantic reasons, but they were also good at convincing people to do random things. And even though Yuuri was against this power of his, he decided to use it to get the young Krylel’d prince to take a nap.

It had probably been a few days since he’d been dragged away from Isar by JJ and his men.

Yuri let himself be led over to the couch, and Yuuri sat down first. Yuri plopped down and rested his head on Yuuri’s arm that had draped behind him on the couch.

“Now, close your eyes, Yuri,” Yuuri whispered. “Sh, just like that.”

Yuri closed his eyes and started to sleep in a couple of minutes, but his brow was furrowed as if he was already having a nightmare. Yuuri sighed and let the boy sleep against his side, thinking about Victor. He’d been captured just like Yuuri had been, but he’d gotten away. Yuuri remembered waking up in the middle of the night and feeling his presence leave the Raesád castle.

Victor was out there somewhere, and he was going to come back and get him. And his younger brother Yuri.

And things were going to be okay.

Yuuri looked down at Yuri and tried not to think about what JJ could’ve done to him.

Yuuri really, really hoped things were going to be okay.

 

 

A/N:

So sorry for the delay!! College hit me like a brick, and my teacher wants me to work more for her, which is both a blessing and a curse. MORE will be revealed about Krallual and Yuri and how they're important to the story. And YAY my vampire bb Yuuri is back! (I know I sound weird - it's like 3 AM where I am.)

Anyway, thank you for all your continued support on this fan fiction. I'm determined as fuck to make this the best thing I've written and to finish it.

I would also like to low key dedicate this chapter to a reader who has been with me since the beginning! [why_not_sabriel](http://archiveofourown.org/users/why_not_sabriel/pseuds/why_not_sabriel) Their comments literally always make my day.

If there are any mistakes, I will most likely fix them tomorrow afternoon.

Here is my [Tumblr](http://opalopalopal.tumblr.com) where you can follow me if you'd like!

And comments and kudos are  _greatly_ appreciated. I hope you all have an awesome day!


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